Unbelievable but true... Reporters from the Miami spanish newspaper "El Nuevo Herald" spent 4 days interviewing and photographing Haitian people that are working under inhumane conditions on the sugar cane fields of one of Dominican Republic's most influential industry giants.

 

This special report was done in secrecy, in order to show the real conditions these workers are exposed to.

 

The report is in Spanish and unfortunately there is no English translation available, since it is exclusive to the Nuevo Herald Journalists.

 

I will translate the essence of the report, but the pictures speak for themselves...

 

La denuncia com?n es el hambre, los malos tratos que reciben por parte de los capataces en los terrenos de los Vicini, desde insultos hasta golpizas y encarcelaciones clandestinas, los deficientes y en muchos casos inexistentes servicios m?dicos y la explotaci?n inhumana de su trabajo a cambio de un estipendio que escasamente alcanza para comer una vez al d?a.

 

Las matem?ticas de la avaricia llegan a tal extremo en estos lugares que en el Central Romana, propiedad de los Fanjul, influyentes magnates del az?car cubanoamericanos del sur de la Florida, algunos trabajadores denunciaron que la empresa les cobra el machete con el que cortan la ca?a.

 

 

Translation:

The common complaint is hunger, mistreatment received from the foremen in the Vicini land, from insults to beatings and clandestine incarcerations, the deficient and in many cases inexistent medical services and inhumane exploitation of their work in exchange of an stipend that is barely enough to eat once a day.

 

The mathematics of avarice go to such extreme in these places that in the "Central Romana", property of the Fanjul family, influential cubanamerican Sugar cane magnates of South Florida, some workers complained that the company charges them for the machete they cut the sugar cane with.

 

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Link to Special Report in Spanish: http://www.miami.com/mld/elnuevo/10600456.htm

 

To the left there are several links. The first link is a gallery of pictures. These are the most heartbreaking and horrible pictures. There is a picture of a dead babygirl who died of malnutrition and her parents didn't even have money to buy a regular casket, so her father made one of fruit boxes....

 

Another picture shows a man dying of hunger.

 

The men in army clothing are military soldiers paid by the company to hunt Haitians that try to escape the plantation.

 

The worst part is that the government is aware of this, as one of the pictures shows a government bus bringing people to the plantation.

well, the government bus does not mean the government knows about it, it might just mean the bus driver is making some extra cash.

 

same thing happens in china, but people love to go to wal mart.

Orisha,

 

Before you write something, make sure you are well informed or at least tried to read the piece.

 

The report clearly states that the government of Dominican Republic knows about it.

There is no logical or humane explanation for this. It is the year 2005, I am disgusted about this. Haiti is not the only country that this is occuring. It is despicable, I hope something can be done to help the less fortunate.

There is no logical or humane explanation for this. It is the year 2005, I am disgusted about this. Haiti is not the only country that this is occuring. It is despicable, I hope something can be done to help the less fortunate.

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It is not in Haiti. It is in the Dominican Republic. These are poor Haitian immigrants that wanted to escape the poverty and social turmoil in Haiti and ended up being slaves in these Dominican Plantations. Despicable!

There are 'slaves' in many places of the world.

 

Not surprising.

There are 'slaves' in many places of the world.

 

Not surprising.

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Tru tru

 

There are places where slavery is much much worse than that

There are 'slaves' in many places of the world.

 

Not surprising.

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Give me a link to support your claim. Where do they actually have Slaves?. This is the first story of this kind I've heard.

oh and the chinese government doesn't about the explotation of chinese people in sweatshops? and you still go to wal mart.

There are 'slaves' in many places of the world.

 

Not surprising.

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Give me a link to support your claim. Where do they actually have Slaves?. This is the first story of this kind I've heard.

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There are millions of slaves worldwide today.

 

What types of slavery exist today?

 

Bonded labour affects at least 20 million* people around the world. People become bonded labourers by taking or being tricked into taking a loan for as little as the cost of medicine for a sick child. To repay the debt, many are forced to work long hours, seven days a week, up to 365 days a year. They receive basic food and shelter as 'payment' for their work, but may never pay off the loan, which can be passed down for generations.

 

Early and forced marriage affects women and girls who are married without choice and are forced into lives of servitude often accompanied by physical violence.

 

Forced labour affects people who are illegally recruited by individuals, governments or political parties and forced to work -- usually under threat of violence or other penalties.

 

Slavery by descent is where people are either born into a slave class or are from a 'group' that society views as suited to being used as slave labour.

 

Trafficking involves the transport and/or trade of people -- women, children and men -- from one area to another for the purpose of forcing them into slavery conditions.

 

Worst forms of child labour affects an estimated 179 million** children around the world in work that is harmful to their health and welfare.

 

From antislavery.org

 

Just browse around there and read about the slavery worldwide,

just look at the sex trade in this country

 

happens frequently where people will get shipped to the US and in exchange are forced into prostitution to pay off an every increasing debt or to just secure the safety for their family left ungaurded back home

I am sorry, but you are confusing "sweatshops" with "Slavery". It can be similar but they are completely different things. In sweatshops, the people still are free to leave.

 

These people in Dominican Republic are actually being held prisoners. They have armed foremen watching them day and night to prevent them from escaping. The military is hired by the Sugar Cane owners to hunt those who escape.

 

Now tell me of a case similar to this?

here's an example of how they are allowed to walk away:

 

No Sweat

Nicholas Kristof of the Times did a series of articles several months ago about the sex slave trade in Cambodia. Pretty twisted stuff. Girls 10-12 and younger even.

Sex slavery is also atrocitous, just like the stuff happening in the DR. Sweat shops are a different issue, even though that is also a cause for concern

Trata de blancas (sex slave trade) is rampant in Latin America. However, I did not want this thread to become about Sex slaves.

 

We are talking about poor black people being held captive in plantations and forced to work for rich Sugar cane magnates. What do you think about this?

do you shop at walmart? have anything at your place that says made in china?

 

if you do, how can you pretend to be outrage by this?

do you shop at walmart? have anything at your place that says made in china?

 

if you do, how can you pretend to be outrage by this?

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The line b/w actual labor slavery and sweat shops is thin, but it exists. Often the workers for american multinationals in asia make more working for say wal mart, than they would if wal mart were not there. Its a tricky issue, but these slaves in the Dr are to the mold of the 19th century US slaves. There a deeper questions about US involvement in this issue

there's a line in some sweatshops, in others is plain slavery.

 

wheny they forced you to wor 7 days a week and they don't allow you to go home to visit your family, looks like slavery too me.

do you shop at walmart? have anything at your place that says made in china?

 

if you do, how can you pretend to be outrage by this?

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No, I don't shop at Walmart. And I don't appreciate your hostile tone when responding to my posts. Whether you agree with me politically or not doesn't give you the automatic right to antagonize me at every opportunity, specially when the issue I am trying to raise shouldn't be that controversial so people have to take sides on it.

 

It is simple, I posted a piece that I took the time to translate for you to be informed and comment on it. It has nothing to do with sweatshops, sex slavery or anything of the sort and whether it is worse, equal or milder. It is just about black people from Haiti forced to work in DR.

 

I don't even post here that much anymore because 90% of those posting on this forum are immature, rude and wildly uninformed. And before you start the "liberal vs. conservative" crap again, I will clarify that 10% of the people I respect on this forum also include conservatives. Get a grip and get some manners kid!

Tonyi brings up a good point. We need to discuss solutions to the problem of slavery in the DR. This is were the issue does become controversial. We can all agree that what is going on there is slavery and should be stopped. Military intervention is one option, although i disagree with it. How about send a few ICE officers down there, to speak with DR govt officials about forcing slave owners to release some slaves into ICE custody and then offering them temporary protected status in the US. I dont know how well that would pan out, im jus tthrowing out some ideas

Tonyi brings up a good point. We need to discuss solutions to the problem of slavery in the DR. This is were the issue does become controversial. We can all agree that what is going on there is slavery and should be stopped. Military intervention is one option, although i disagree with it. How about send a few ICE officers down there, to speak with DR govt officials about forcing slave owners to release some slaves into ICE custody and then offering them temporary protected status in the US. I dont know how well that would pan out, im jus tthrowing out some ideas

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The thing is that I don't think it is something for the U.S to intervene on. This should first concern Haiti and Dominican Republic. International non-governmental organizations need to get moving as well. Raising awareness is the only way to bring these slave holders to public scrutiny. Hopefully, the mainstream media will get interested and poke some nerves on these families (the sugar cane magnates) and then they will have to either give these poor people a decent pay and living quarters or send them back to Haiti.